Sometimes "home" is two places......
no matter how far away you are,
and how long you've been gone.

Today is one of those "sometimes".....

Sometimes you wake up and the light hits you in the eyes..... and its a wonderful, warm feeling.
Sometimes you wake up and the light hits you in the eyes..... and its so bright you want to poke them out.

Sometimes too much of something is a great opportunity to save.
Sometimes too much of something is inconvenient and frustrating.

Sometimes time alone is peaceful and rejuvenating.
Sometimes time alone is painful and lonely.

Sometimes being in love is effortless and fulfilling.
Sometimes being in love is confusing and terrifying.

Sometimes the one you love loves you right back.
Sometimes the one you love doesn't come back.

Sometimes you're beautiful in the mirror.
Sometimes your mirror seems broken and non-reflective.

Sometimes the world is yours and there's nothing you can't do.
Sometimes the world turns on you and there's nothing you can do.

Sometimes you can laugh about it.
Sometimes you can cry about it.

Sometimes you feel.
Sometimes you're numb.

"Sometimes" is all the time, and its up to you.

Voyage of the swans
"Olaf Niess ships his swans across Alster River in Hamburg, Germany. Every Autumn he catches his swans, places them in boats and brings them to their winter quarters in a nearby pond which stays ice-free during the winter."

Hey Mom.....
do you know Olaf? Just thought you might be friends,
or separated at birth....

THE DAY AFTER........

So.... everyone survived. They ate the food I prepared, without complaining or making odd faces. No one seemed to get sick (that I know of), and no one had to use a plastic fork or a paper plate for dinner, so that was nice. I would not have made it through the day without Uncle Frank, so thank you Mr. Frank for your advice, and making me laugh when all I wanted to do was cry in the yams. And thank you to Mom and Uncle Frank & Muncie for all the years you have made me Thanksgiving dinner... I had NO idea! thank you again.

Looking at it with a new day this morning, I don't know what I was so nervous about. Maybe just because I'd never done any of that before, and it wasn't my family. If it had been, they would have known I've never done that before and if it did all turn out really badly, we could just laugh.... versus leaving someone else's family without a thanksgiving dinner to eat. I realize I put a lot of the pressure on myself, the panic sort of set in and my mind went into every nightmare scenario it could have. I'm just not the domestic type, never have been, so I had no idea how this was going to go.

My only regret is that I don't have enough turkey left over (which meant it was good...) to go home tonight, lay on the couch and watch a movie with a big turkey sandwich..... that would have been nice. And I no longer have the "I've never done thanksgiving dinner before" excuse, so I have a feeling this will be the beginning of years in the kitchen instead of curled up by Muncie & Frank's fireplace in the softie. I somehow feel older today, like I have crossed over.... some right of passage .... and anyone rolling their eyes right now and thinking I am being too dramatic clearly has NEVER single-handedly made a thanksgiving dinner.

Happy turkey sandwiches,
-Cyn